I might not have lasted very long as an education officer with Singapore's Ministry of Education, but I did at least stick it out for long enough to suss out the dress code.

The No 1 thing newcomers to Singapore schools need to be aware of is that the classrooms aren't usually air-conditioned but teachers are supposed to look reasonably smart even so. Also, teachers everywhere spend a great many hours on their feet, and teachers in Singapore need to have reasonably small feet if they expect to find shoes that are up to the job on sale actually in Singapore. This posting isn't intended to be about where to buy shoes, however.

Something else newcomers might benefit from understanding is that the MOE dress code is neither as strict nor as weird as it might appear at first sight. For example, the phrase 'No unnaturally coloured hair' ought not to be interpreted to mean teachers aren't permitted to dye their hair if they choose to; what they're not supposed to do is dye their hair any colour the leaders in their school might happen to disapprove of. (Yes, I realise it's impossible to predict what a bunch of people you haven't ever met before are likely to approve or disapprove of, but, basically, if you were able to get away with it in your country of origin, you'll be able to get away with it in Singapore, no problem.) The point is to appear professional, which means a) dressing in a manner that's appropriate to the job and, even more importantly, b) not looking like a sweaty, little heap. As I mentioned already, only a very tiny percentage of local school classrooms have air-con, meaning you need to loo for fabrics that don't cause you to perspire excessively and are capable of mopping up whatever moisture you do notice yourself producing. And no, Uniqlo aren't paying me to recommend that you invest in four to five of their supima cotton crew neck tee shirts, which are available in so many different colours, you're bound to find something to suit.

Of course, wearing basically the same tee shirt day after day is going to be boring, but that's what pretty accessories are for, isn't it? Bear in mind that jewellery can't be too statement or your students might find it distracting. That said, I'm increasingly convinced that those of us who are that bit older should never leave home without earrings; pearl studs always seemed to work for me, and I don't care how uncool they're supposed to be, I opted to wear half moon reading glasses I could look over the top of whenever I needed to see what was happening at the back of the room.